The Wolf

Some lonely highway in Colorado, 2002

    It was a cold, clear night along the highway as Jack Moore smoked a cigarette on the side of the road. He looked up at the moon above him, about half shining down at him. He looked around the empty road and saw nothing but the trees surrounding him and the poorly paved highway out of town. He always hated it out here, it was too quiet. He wrapped his coat tight around him to try and trap some of his heat in as he took another drag from the smoke. He lifted the hood oh his car to engage the kill switch, completing the illusion for when the time came.
    This was the job, some leggy blond wanting to know what her husband was up to on his weekend camping trips. Evidence pointed to hunting deer, getting piss drunk with his friends and singing terribly around an open flame. But the pictures weren't why he was here. Not really. He'd tracked their camp site. Dangerously close to a community who lived off the grid. A group that wasn't too keen on the humans making a fool of themselves in their territory.
    He tossed the camera into his work bag that was nestled under the passenger seat. With a heavy sigh he flicked his cigarette onto the ground. He had hoped the guy was cheating. The wife wasn't going to be happy with the work. The way she was sleeping around, Jack figured she just didn't want to feel like the bad one. He didn't care, either way. But she was gonna try to get out of paying, as if Jack was hired to alleviate her guilt.  
    But as he pulled out his pack of smokes, he felt his mood sour further. He was still going to have to scare them away from here. He pulled the lighter from his pocket, tracing his thumb across the silver inserted engraving “J.M.” an old mentor gave him as a reminder of what he was. He was often grounded by the sensation of the silver on his bare skin. He lit the cigarette, taking puffs from it as he loading his revolver. Somewhere deep in his pockets was a single silver bullet. He put it in the sixth cylinder, just in case. Once finished with his cigarette and walked back into the woods, back towards the campers.
    He rehearsed his lines. Broke down trying to get out of the city, he heard the laughing from the highway and hoped someone at this party could help. The sounds of the four men were easy enough to follow, especially with someone's boombox blasting music into the woods. It was as if they wanted to get hunted by something. They may as well be chanting, “Come get us, creatures of the night, we are delicious”.
    He made no effort to keep himself a secret. Even yelling for help as he felt he was in ear shot. It took Jack a few tries before he heard the music abruptly stop. There were murmurs in the distance. Jack took this opportunity to call out once more. Hoping someone would finally hear him before they tried to shoot him. With arms up, he walked to the small camp they had set up. The three men looked at him, confused.
    “My car broke down, I was hoping one of you could help?” Jack said, trying to sound like a lost puppy.
    One of the men nodded, “We making that much noise?” He laughed, sounding almost proud.
    “Yeah, heard you from the highway.” Jack gestured back towards his car, “Wouldn't happen to have a generator?”
    “Sure, need a jump?” The oldest of the group asked, setting his beer down on a log.
    “If it isn't any trouble.” Jack said, trying to sound courteous.
    The leader of the little group stood and grabbed the small gas powered generator that was powering their things. The other's stood up with him. They seemed a little suspicious of the interloper.
    “You can all come if you like.” Jack said, honestly, “I'm not the danger here.”
    “Fuck you mean by that?” One of the men said, scowling at Jack.
    Jack shrugged, “I hear the wolves out here are pretty fuckin' huge.” He turned away from the group, walking towards his car.
    “Haven't seen any wolves around here, yet.” The older man said.
    Jack stuck another cigarette into his mouth, “Really?” He lit it, “There was a pretty gruesome attack just last week.” He put his lighter away, “Saw it on the news. Was right around here.”
    “I think we can handle ours-Oof!” The man was stopped as Jack threw an arm out, smacking the man in the gut to stop him.
    It grew quiet as the group were stopped in their tracks. Jack heard the sound of something skulking around. The way the others were unable to speak suggested they heard it, too. Or at least felt the eyes on them. Only the crackle of the fire could be heard and the quiet shuffle of the eldest as the small party started clumping together.
    Before Jack the wolf stepped into the light, snarling menacingly. Jack stood frozen in the eyes of the beast. The men behind him were shaking bad enough that the sound of the leaves rustling at their feet could be heard over a soft growling of the wolf. Slowly, Jack reached for the gun at his hip.
    He looked the wolf up and down, his gun pulled and pointed at the ground. He tried to figure it out. See the wolf's intent. If he knew this wolf from before. The wolf cocked it's head, sniffing the air in front of Jack. Jack shook his head, trying to signal the wolf to stand down. That he had this handled. Until he realized the wolves here could care less about the men dicking around. It was Jack's return that caused the wolf to investigate.  
    The two stared each other down, waiting for someone to make a move. Jack's mind was a flurry of thoughts. Struggling to remember if the wolf was here to welcome him with open arms or tear him to pieces for coming back. Jack didn't like the thought of either of those outcomes. Moments passed as the two worked to size one another up.
    “Don't just stand there, shoot it!” One of the men whispered in a high whine.
    Jack sighed sharply through his gritted teeth, “Shut up.” He said quickly.
    “You have a gun, kill it!”
    “I said shut the fuck up.” Jack turns his head only slightly, keeping his eyes glued to the beast.
    There was a dull murmur behind him, but Jack ignored them, trying instead to communicate to the wolf to leave them alone. The wolf merely rolled it's eyes before acting like a wild animal. Jack recognized the eyes, but he couldn't remember the name.
    “God damn it, fine.” Jack said, as quietly as he could, “Just fucking do it.”
    The wolf stepped forward then Jack steadied himself, pointing the gun at the wild animal. With a gasp from the men, the wolf lunged. There was a gunshot heard before Jack hit the ground, the wolf on top of him pulling on his leather coat with it's teeth, acting as if it was digging into his flesh. Jack let out a loud scream, trying to sound authentic.
    The men took this as a sign to run, and run they did. It didn't take long before to wolf on top of him to stop pulling on his clothes. It walked over towards his gun, changing into his human form. He picked the revolver up, examining it. He made a point to check the bullets.
    “Still carry that silver bullet, huh?” The other man said.
    Jack walked up to the man, his hand extended, “Never know when I'll need it.”
    “Glad you haven't felt the need to use it.” The man said, handing over the gun.
    “Thanks.” Jack said, holstering it, “For the assist.” He nodded towards the camp.
    “You look different. Almost didn't recognize you, uh..”
    “Just Jack, now.” Jack said, lighting up another cigarette.
    “Still have the lighter I gave you, I see.”
    “Comes in handy.” Jack turned away, walking towards his car.
    “Can't convince you to stay?” The man seemed almost hopeful.
    “No.” Jack replied, leaving the area for he had hoped the last time.